Perhaps the most common type of target holder used for gunnery practice is a simple stationary frame which is made from wood and which is partially embedded in the ground, the target, being attached to the frame by staples, thumbtacks or the like. In another system used by the military for situations where firing at the target takes place for a limited period of time, trenches are dug in the ground and target holders are mounted on vertical runners which extend above the ground level. The target holders are then manually raised and lowered for the time period desired by an operator located in the trench.
There are a number of obvious disadvantages to each of the prior art systems. With the simple stationary frame, there is no way to control the time during which the target is exposed and this, of course, detracts from the realism of the simulation provided. On the other hand, the manually operated system limits the location of the target holder to the area of the trench, among other disadvantages.